


Honey

by missgaga7



Series: It Was Always You [4]
Category: Bon Appétit Test Kitchen (Web Series)
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-03
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:07:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23975749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/missgaga7/pseuds/missgaga7
Summary: Claire, Brad, and their daughters look for the newest member of their family... a puppy.
Relationships: Brad Leone & Claire Saffitz, Brad Leone/Claire Saffitz, Claire Saffitz & Sauci Saffitz
Series: It Was Always You [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1699045
Comments: 1
Kudos: 5





	Honey

The begging seemed like it was all we had heard for months.

Last July, when Claire's sister, Emily, brought a new puppy home to her city apartment, the girls had become completely enamored with their Auntie's new dog.

Over the years, we had considered many dogs members of our extended family. Our pets loved us blindly. They provided us with an unparalleled devotion, and no matter where in the world we were, we knew they would always be waiting to welcome us home.

Because of the nature of our hectic lifestyles, our pets were truly one of the few constants in our lives. However, due to the reality of life, their sweet, loyal souls had come and gone, far quicker than any of us wanted, and now, we were left with just our sweet aging cat Felix.

You see, ever since Lulu was old enough to sit at the table, Claire and I had made it a point for all of us to have dinner together as a family every night. It was a sacred time for us to shut out the outside world, and simply focus on our family.

Our old pups used to sit at the girls feet, desperately hoping that they would drop something from their little grubby hands from him to eat. More often than not, Lulu and Margo would willingly oblige, though they would usually skip him something they were not interested in eating.

Lucky for the girls, the dogs had taken a liking to cauliflower.

Ever since we had lost our dogs Maybelle, and Lucas, puppies were just about all the girls could talk about.

Over dinner, we would discuss what the girls had learned at school, the latest first grade dramas, and the latest 'doggy' they had seen in their daily central walk from the restaurant back home.

And without fail, we would hear the same pleading, that would result in our same routine answers.

"We can't right now, girls."

"Maybe in a few months."

"Your sister is just too little."

However, our daily refusals were no use. Our children were relentless, conniving actually. Much like their mother, even at four and six, they were strategic in getting what they wanted.

They had tried absolutely everything in their power to try to convince us that they time to get a new puppy was now, and I had to admit, their persistence was starting to chip away at my stamina, and my heart strings.

We had lost Maybelle, a few years ago, and Lucus shortly after. Though we had Felix, our house felt empty without the loving affection of a dog.

Those pups were our first babies, and losing them was more difficult that I could have ever imagined.

We learned how to be parents by caring for those dogs. They were little lives that needed to be cared for, pulling us away from the selfishness of youth and into the responsibilities of adulthood.

When I first adopted Maybelle, then Lucus, I had never experienced the weight of a life completely reliant on me. Through them I learned responsibility, love, and the true meaning of loyalty and friendship.

Our dogs had been by our sides for every one of our important life milestones.

Through his old age, the scar on Lucus's forehead remained visible from the night he had been in the passenger seat when I crashed my first car, and he came charging out of his crate in the back to make sure I was okay.

Maybelle had slept with Claire every night when she was pregnant with the girls, pawing at her chest to make sure she was okay.

Lucus was by my side on our wedding day, and the entirety of our little animal-pack was there waiting patiently at the door to watch us bring our Lulu home from the hospital when she first born.

All of our pets had been tried and true members of the family, and thus, accepting the reality that they were getting old was extremely difficult. Although aging was unavoidable, it did not make it any easier to lose them.

As time went on, both of us realized how much we missed having a young, bounding dog around the house to grow with the girls.

Just a few weeks ago, Claire and I had begun to speak more seriously about getting another dog. There were so many pros, and deep down I think we both knew the time was now.

However, I was still hesitant.

I wanted to get the girls a puppy, but I guess getting a new dog just felt like it was the beginning of the end. Or at least the start to letting Felix, and all our old dogs go.

As much as I desperately want to press the pause button, life does not stop for anyone, or anything, and eventually we would all have to move forward.

So, I caved.

Three hours ago, Claire and I left the girls under the watchful eye of their grandparents, as they played in their Saturday youth soccer game in Central Park. The two of them would be in a tournament all afternoon, so headed up to a small pet shelter in the Bronx to see if there were any pups that needed a good home.

We arrived around noon at a beaten down shelter with large windows. As we parallel parked out front, we could see the sleeping puppies in cardboard boxes through the glass.

"Are you sure about this?" Claire asked, as she slammed the front door of the passenger seat, and went to open the back to unbuckle our youngest, Evie from her carseat.

"I'm sure," I confirmed, as I fumbled the keys in my hand and locked the door.

"Okay, but only if you're really, really sure," Claire said, as she leaned over and our lips met.

"I'm sure, baby," I nodded, giving her a reassuring nod.

"Alright, let's go," she said, as she wiped the mark of pink lipstick off the top of my lip, before she focused back on our daughter. She readjusted our youngest, against her hip, fixing the headband on the baby's head, which Evie had pushed away in her sleep.

I pursed my lips nervously, as I led my wife into an old makeshift animal shelter. There was an old, metal "open" sign hanging on the glass and the chime on the door handle rang as we entered. As if on command, the six puppies in the cardboard box by the window began to yelp loudly.

Claire walked towards the box in the windowsill and started to whisper in Evie's ear as she bent down and pointed to the puppies to draw our daughter's attention.

I made my way to the front to see if there was someone that could help us.

"Hello? Excuse me? Anyone around who can help us?" My voice echoed through the small store, as if it went back for miles. I pulled off my baseball hat with the name of the girls' soccer team name on it, scanning my surroundings to make sure this was really a safe place to have Claire and the baby.

Clearly the city inspection commission had not been uptown in a while to check out this spot. The shelves were dusty, the mental buckets for food and water were rusted, the windows obviously hadn't be clean in months. Other than the dogs, the only visible life was a white parrot that was kept repeating my greeting.

"Hello? Hello? Hello?"

Obviously people didn't come here often.

It was a mess, empty birdcages, dirty green tanks with fish swimming in them, and rusted cages where kittens used to sleep inside.

The door to the back storage room was cracked open so I decided to venture in and see if anyone was back there to help.

"I'll be right back, babe," I called back to Claire as I made my way around the counter.

"Wait, Brad, are you sure you should do that?" Claire turned to me nervously, trying to look back and forth between me and our daughter, whose fingers were gripping the cardboard box and trying to reach the puppies as they pawed excitedly towards her.

"It's alright, babe. I'm just going to check to see if there's anyone in the back," I said as I pushed the door open and peaked my head inside.

The back room was even worse than the front, with materials and products scattered in disarray all over the floor. An older man in his mid sixties was asleep in an old metal chair in the back of the room.

He was unshaven, his mouth cocked open with his head tilted back in slumber. His arms were crossed across his distended belly, and his graying dark hair was hidden under a Yankees hat. He heaved in and out slowly, with a soft snore when he exhaled.

"Excuse me, sir? Sir?" I said as I put a gentle hand on his shoulder. He snorted, before his eyes opened slowly and he turned his head towards me.

"Uh. 'scuse me - er, sorry 'bout that," he muttered, with a thick New York accent. "I must-a dozed off, it's that heat that's gettin' to me," he muttered as I nodded politely and he pulled out a cigarette. "How can I help you?" He asked. He pulled himself up, and started to make his way towards the front, as I followed closely behind.

"You look familiar," he said, "do I know you?"

I paused for a moment, in situations like these, I hated being recognized. I just wanted to complete a normal activity without the weight of fame. "I came in here years ago to check out the dogs," I lied.

"Mmm, maybe," He agreed. Sometimes it was nice to have someone who was not completely obsessed with who we were, our success, or our family. Someone who was not completely caught up in the media, who would treat us like any other person around here.

"My wife and I heard you just got some new rescues from a puppy farm upstate, and we were hoping to pick one out," I explained as he led me from behind the counter to where Claire was.

"Sure, yeah, you're just the first people to come in and see 'em. Just came in yesterday morning."

Claire smiled and stood up as we approached her. "My wife, Claire," I explained as she handed me Evie's stuffed animal, so she could shake the man's hand. "Claire, this is... sorry, I don't think I caught your name."

"Anthony. Anthony Lombardi," he turned to shake my hand properly.

"Brad, pleasure to meet you. My daughter, Evie." I continued, as he gave a toothy grin to the baby. He waved at her as she watched him cautiously and rested her head in the crook of Claire's neck.

"Well, aren't you just precious? Hi there, Princess. Are Momma and Daddy coming to get you a puppy?" He asked, though there obviously was no response from Evie.

"Well, for her big sisters too," I added, looking down at the large box of yellow lab puppies who were trying desperately to escape.

"Oh, they're more of you, are there?" He asked, as I nodded with a chuckle.

"Well pick whichever one you want, and it's yours," He explained as he ran his hand over his stubble.

I turned to Claire, "What do you think?" I asked bending down to pet the puppies.

"Well, I kinda like the one in the back," she pointed to a yellow puppy who was sitting contently in the back unlike the rest of his siblings who were climbing on top of one another for attention.

"That's Honey," Anthony pointed. "She was the runt of the litter but she's gettin' bigger now."

"Just like you, baby girl," Claire remarked, nuzzling her face into the Evie's cheek, as the infant let loud giggle

"She's a sweet girl. Mischievous little one," Anthony added.

"I think she'll fit right in with everyone," I nodded with a smile of encouragement. "Come here. Come on, Honey."

She wagged her tail excitedly and pawed her way between her siblings towards me. I picked her up and she greeted me with a lick on my hand and a grin.

"Well you want to be part of the family, girl?" I asked.

She wagged her tail when she heard her name, but I decided to take that as a ‘yes’.

"We'll take her," I said as I ran my hand over her soft fur and scratched behind her ears.

"I'm so glad," Anthony grinned.

"I wish we could take them all home," Claire smirked.

"Don't even think about it. If the big girls were here, I have a feeling we would be bringing everyone home, including the bird," I snorted.

"Well you know where I am if Honey needs a friend," Anthony said. "You know, I still can't put my finger on it. You two just look so familiar. You must be Italian, no?"

Claire nodded with a smile, "he is."

"Well, we must have known each other in another life," Anthony shrugged with a grin. "You need anything, you give me a call."

"Thank you," I said, gratefully, shaking his hand.

"You got it," he replied as he waved at Evie, and she gave him a smile.

We picked her out a new pink collar, paid the city shelter adoption fee, and made our way back to the car out front. Honey sat in Claire's lap, and she pawed excitedly at the window as we made our way back downtown.

The girls were just finishing up their games and shaking the other team's hands when we arrived back in Central Park. Claire had put Evie in a sling so she could sleep against her chest, and I had put a leash on Honey trying to keep the curious puppy under control as we walked back to the fields.

"How'd they do?" I asked, coming behind Sauci, Jeff, and Emily.

"Oh my God!" Sauci said as they turned to see Honey running towards them. "Who is this?"

"Honey," I said as I reached down to pick her up.

"I guess Lola has some competition," Jeff smirked, as he and Sauci came to pet the puppy.

"She is pretty damn cute," Emily admitted as her dog tried desperately to get a look at Honey.

"And they won, and Lulu scored – our teaching skills are clearly paying off," Jeff grinned.

"Ugh, no! I missed it?" I groaned as I put Honey back down to play with Lola.

"That's okay, this is only the second week. We've got six more Saturdays for her to score," Jeff laughed.

"They're going to be so excited," Sauci added, as she leaned over to press a kiss to the sleeping baby on Claire's chest.

I nodded knowingly, already aware I had made that right decision as the girls ran towards us. They gripped their water bottles, their little backpacks shifting back and forth with their movement as they hurried over.

They looked adorable. Their brown hair had been pulled up in high ponytails by their mother, and their white uniforms were scuffed with green grass marks.

"Daddy! Daddy! Did you see my goal?" Lulu squealed as she approached us. "Oh my goodness! Who's that puppy, Daddy? She's so cute!"

I looked at Claire with a grin, as the girls kneeled down and Honey approached them, her tail wagging excitedly.

"Now, girls," I began, as I bent down to their level. "What have you been asking for, for the past... I don't know – a year, year and a half?"

They looked at each other confused, seemingly having no clue as to what in the world I was talking about.

"Girls, meet Honey – your new puppy," I said with a grin.

I think they squealed louder than I've ever heard them, as Claire just burst out laughing.

"Our puppy?" Margo squealed, her mouth dropping.

"She's really ours, Daddy?!" Lulu exclaimed.

"Really," I nodded, as Lulu looked over at her mother for confirmation.

"All ours, baby," Claire said, holding one hand around Evie and the other to embrace Margo who had thrown her arms around her mother's neck in thanks.

The girls screamed excitedly as they knelt to the ground. Honey jumped on top of them, licking their faces, as they howled with laughter.

I finally understood after seeing the expressions on my daughters' faces why this was all worth it. It was that moment, when I realized, that this dog did not mean the end of an old friendship, but simply the beginning of a new one.

"You know what's the only thing that could make this better, Daddy?" Lulu commented as we made our way home through the park.

"What's that baby?" I asked. I had Honey's leash in my right hand as the puppy walked way up ahead, and Lulu's hand gripping my left hand.

"Well, my best friend, Charlotte, from school's family just got a little pet pig! His name is Melvin! I think Honey would love a piggy friend, don't you think?"

I just shook my head, chuckling. "I think, Lu, I'm going to say a hard and fast no to the pig."

And so it begins again.

**Author's Note:**

> Please comment and let me know what you think!


End file.
